Enson Macaranas, a 6th grader from Garapan Elementary School, told the Variety that the new skate park gives them a place to practice after school and during the weekends.
“It’s hard to find time especially when we have a lot of assignments but this is a lot of fun. We are starting to form a group of young skaters,” Macaranas said. He said the name of the group he formed is “Elevation.”
Skating with Macaranas yesterday was a group of fifth to ninth graders.
“This skate park is really a good idea because we can even learn to skate by ourselves,” said Jamal Cabrera, a fifth grader at Garapan Elementary School.
PTI basketball player Edsel Mendoza, who was with his 10-year-old son, said the skate park is a “wonderful idea.”
“Skating helps the children get exercise, mingle with other children and stay away from trouble,” Mendoza said.
“This is aside from developing their skating skills,” he added.
He is encouraging other parents to support their children and to be with them at the skate park.
“It makes a lot of difference when you are here supporting and encouraging them,” Mendoza said.
He added that the skate park provides a time for parents and their children to strengthen their “bonds.”
In an earlier interview, I-SK8 Society secretary Deirdre Mclarin said they started planning for the skate park project in 2006.
They hired skate park specialist John Glaze from Indonesia in August to oversee the construction of the project.
It was the Saipan Rotary Club that raised funds after realizing the great risks children face when skating on public roads.
